Medical marijuana: 5 things to know about the legislative push

The Senate and House reconvene on Sept. 15

With the Pennsylvania Legislature set to reconvene in less than a month, citizen lobbyists and marijuana advocates are anxiously looking to their lawmakers to see the fate of proposed legislation to legalize medical marijuana in Pennsylvania.

The Senate and House are slated to get back to business on Sept. 15. In the meantime, here are five things you should know about Senate Bill 1182, the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act.

1. The ball is in the Senate Appropriations Committee's hands — for now

S.B. 1182 must clear the Appropriations Committee before it can be put to a vote on the Senate floor. If it clears the Senate, it would go to a House committee before the House Appropriations Committee and, ultimately, the House floor. After clearing both the House and the Senate, the bill would go to Gov. Tom Corbett's desk for either his signature or a veto.

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2. In an election year, polarizing legislation can be unpopular

Folmer, who represents parts of Dauphin, Lebanon and York counties, is up for re-election this November. But that has not stopped the Republican from pioneering the hot-button legislation, which nearly made one of his staff members fall out of his chair when he initially mentioned the idea, Folmer said.

The bill should still get solid consideration from hesitant legislators who are concerned with job security, he said.

"This is an 80-20 issue," Folmer said. "Meaning 80 percent for it and 20 percent against it. This is an issue politicians should love."

Voting to legalize medical marijuana in Pennsylvania should be a no-brainer, Folmer said, noting that it would get 80 percent of a legislator's district to say, "Hey, way to go!"

3. The clock is ticking

When the General Assembly returns to session on Sept. 15, there are approximately 12 working days left to conduct business. Folmer wants Appropriations to clear the bill Sept. 15, so the Senate can vote on his bill the next day. Medical marijuana's legislative push would go back to square one if S.B. 1182 does not make it out of both chambers before the legislature breaks for the Nov. 4 election, Folmer said.

4. There is optimism, but only so much

Folmer is hopeful the bill can clear its necessary hurdles in time to reach Gov. Corbett's desk before the election.

"Leadership has been very cooperative and very helpful to get this over to the House," Folmer said.

While Folmer wanted his bill to clear the 50-member Senate before the summer break started in early July, he said he did not want to rush the process that has been extremely deliberate. He wanted to make sure there was more than enough votes to get it out of the Law and Justice Committee with an overwhelming majority, he said.

Nothing has changed in the governor's office, however, which could halt the progress of Folmer's bill.

5. The bill has a companion in the House

Folmer's bill has companion legislation in the House, which is intended to speed up the at-times crawling legislative pace.

H.B. 2182 was referred to the House Judiciary Committee on July 1, but members have yet to vote on it.

The purpose of the bill was to get the House's 203 members up to speed with Folmer's legislation so if it makes it to their chamber, representatives are less likely to be blindsided by it, Folmer said.

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